Meet Kyle Coletti, the Founder of Focusmaster Fitness! I was introduced to Focusmaster a year ago through a close friend and was signing up for an 18 month membership after my first week there. I’ve been to countless gyms over the years, tried my hand at being a runner for a time in-between and joined more gyms. If you haven’t already learned this about me, I’m very easily bored. I can’t wait to get my butt in this gym every week. For 30 minutes, all I think about is what I am doing right in that moment. I don’t stress about the emails waiting for me or my endless task list. The lights go down, the music goes up, your gloves go on and you sink into the moment. If you are looking to branch out from what you’re doing right now, go! You don’t have to know a damn thing about boxing. The instructors are amazing and you’ll feel like a pro in no time - or if you’re me, you never really do, but it doesn’t matter because hitting things is FUN!

First off, tell us where we can find you!

Our fitness studio is located at 828 Hoosick Road in Troy and you can find us online at:
Focusmaster.com
Instagram (focusmaster_fitness)
Facebook (/focusmasterfitness)

What inspired you to start your business?

In short, it was being discontent and unfulfilled with my job at the time. I was working in Finance in NYC after college and after a couple of years, I realized that wasn’t something I was as passionate as I wanted my career to be.

I played sports and was around fitness for a large part of my life and found myself using fitness and boxing classes as an escape of sorts from my day job.  I was always drawn toward boxing based workouts and during this time, I was a member of several different gyms, which provided me some valuable insight into a variety of classes and ultimately, I saw an opportunity to create something that would be a better experience for members of all ages and fitness levels.  

It wasn’t a decision that just happened overnight, the process was a couple years in the making, but I knew I had this driving passion to bring this idea to life. If I hadn’t grown up in an entrepreneurial family that ran their own restaurant, I don’t know if I would have been as eager and as willing to leave the financial stability of my career in Finance for the unknown of entrepreneurship.

What do you think sets you apart from everyone else?

There are a lot of really great things about Focusmaster that make it unique; from our members and Coaches, to the boxing aspect of our workout and even our class environment, but I really think it’s the efficiency of our workouts and the results our members have been able to get. We’ve been able to provide a fitness solution for people that have struggled finding a fitness program that can actually fit into their life and our 30 minute total body workouts have been able to do that.

What is your background?

I grew up in Troy, right down the street from where the Focusmaster studio is today. Graduated from Troy High and went on to SUNY Cortland to study Business and Financial Management and played 4 years of hockey. I then went on to work in NYC at Morgan Stanley for about 5 years before pursuing my passion and building what Focusmaster is today.

What has been your biggest success?

The biggest one day success has probably been winning the TV Show, Sweat Inc. on Spike, which was hosted by Fitness Experts, Jillian Michaels and Randy Hetrick, earning our workout the title of “America’s Next Fitness Phenomenon”. That being said, I think one of the real successes has just been creating an unbelievable team of Coaches and creating an amazing culture and community around Focusmaster.

What has been your biggest challenge?

The biggest challenge is really knowing when and how to turn it off. Following your passion is fun, exciting and all encompassing, but there needs to be a balance. Finding that balance is something I continue to work on.

Describe a typical work day.

My days can vary pretty greatly because we not only have our Focusmaster Studio in Troy, but we also sell our Focusmaster G-1000 Striking Machines and fitness programming all around the world. I like to try and make one of our morning classes at the studio. It’s a great way to start my day and it allows me to stay close to the members and the experience that we delivery each day.  Then I’ll be answering emails, working on marketing and sales projects, talking with our manager and developing programming.

What other small businesses inspire you?

There are so many business’s that inspire me. Anybody that is driven with a passion and a will to bring their ideas and concepts to life. I also think most small business owners can relate and appreciate what it takes to be successful, regardless of the industry they are in.

What’s your best advice for someone looking to start their own business?

Find something that you love to do and go for it. Try to be in the best financial situation you can be. Everything takes more money and longer to happen than you think. But if you want to go for it, do it because you don’t want to look back and think, “what if”.

What is your favorite quote and why?

I wish I could say I have one, but don’t. Every so often I’ll come across something that makes me take a minute and think because it strikes a cord. A lot of the time it would be a quote on appreciating the journey and not focusing just on outcomes and results.